Salivary Rapid HIV Testing: Health Seeking and Coping in African Americans Annually, of those who test positive for HIV in the United States, 25%-33% fail to return for initial test results; presenting a major barrier to HIV prevention, education, and subsequent treatment. Alarmingly, the average length of time from testing HIV positive to entry into care ranges from 1-5 years. African Americans account for 50% of the newly estimated HIV/AIDS diagnoses, with the majority being tested only after developing symptoms of AIDS. Moreover, African Americans are more likely to postpone medical care after finding they are HIV positive. In 2004, the introduction of a rapid HIV test using a saliva sample (SRT) made immediate results possible in community-based settings thus eliminating the necessity of invasive techniques, lengthy delays for test results, and the need to return to the agency. The impact of such immediate availability on one's likelihood to be tested and enter care has not been described. Additionally, psychosocial, cognitive, and behavioral factors influencing the likelihood of HIV testing using the new SRT have not been assessed; nor are there HIV and population-specific measures available to examine said factors The specific aims of the research plan are to 1) describe the personal factors, social resources, sociodemographic factors, cognitive appraisal, and health and coping behaviors which influence African Americans' likelihood of utilizing rapid HIV saliva testing methods, and entry into health care if HIV positive and; 2) evaluate and modify specific HIV testing appraisal items of the HIV Testing Survey 2002 (HITS 2002) as a basis for the development of a culturally and linguistically appropriate disease and population-specific measure to determine the likelihood of seeking an HIV saliva rapid test. To accomplish these aims, the applicant seeks to complement his foundational research training by developing the skills to utilize mixed method research designs in this focused area of research. The training portion of this application is designed to provide crucial tools, skills, and experience to 1) use a mixed method design to describe factors that influence African Americans' likelihood of using rapid HIV saliva testing and entering the health care system and 2) develop a culturally- and linguistically-appropriate disease and population-specific measure to examine reasons for seeking an HIV saliva rapid test. The information gained from this study will be the basis for the development of a psychosocial intervention to enhance salivary HIV rapid testing and entry into care in African Americans. [unreadable] [unreadable] [unreadable]